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‘Sweeping’ gang bust leads to 201 charges for 34 people after 18-month investigation

VANCOUVER—New details on gang activity in the Lower Mainland have emerged following one of B.C.’s largest gang crime investigations in recent history.

Vancouver Police Department announced Friday the seizure of at least 120 firearms, 50 kilograms of drugs and more than $1.6 million worth of cash and jewelry by Task Force Tourniquet involving several municipal police departments including Surrey, Richmond, and Langley RCMP.

One of the most recognizable is the Red Scorpions Gang “closely aligned” with the Kang and Latimer group — allegedly made up of members in the Kang family including Sameet Kang, Gary Kang, their parents and close associates.

“The Kang/Latimer Group has been in conflict with multiple groups over the past 18 months and their allegiances remain fluid and ever-changing,” VPD said in a statement.

Lisa Byrne, VPD staff sergeant and team commander for Task Force Tourniquet, said one of the “trends” of gang activity in the Lower Mainland is members subletting high-end rental properties that have more robust security systems “they believe keep them safe mostly from rival gangs,” and short-term rentals often without the knowledge of the homeowners.

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“My team found this particularly disturbing: We had rival gang members housed within dozens of metres within one another and the potential for spontaneous violence and gun play was obviously super-concerning for us when we saw this happening,” she added.

Other “trends,” Byrne explained, are the rentals being used to process fentanyl and other drugs.

Investigators have also noticed more parents involved in gang activity with their children. The gang bust led to the arrest of three parents.

“We have noticed that parental involvement at times can be anywhere from being complicit, wilfully blind to their children’s activities, or completely unaware of their children’s activities.”

VPD added the cost of this operation was substantial but did not disclose an amount.

A total of 45 full-time investigators were employed for the project.

Jenny Peng is a Vancouver-based reporter covering business. Follow her on Twitter: @JennyPengNow

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